The present invention relates generally to a conveyor system of a type having a channel for confining and conveying granular or powdery materials and having a flexible member disposed therein which is moveable within the channel, and more particularly to a hold-down apparatus for holding the flexible conveyor member down within the material to be conveyed.
In the type of conveyor system referred to above, there exists a general problem that when the material being conveyed gets slightly moist or tends to stick together for any reason, the flexible conveyor member, riding in the channel, tends to be pushed upwardly and rides over the top of such material which is sticking together, thereby leaving it behind and tending to allow it to build up. This buildup of material then tends to cause problems because it quite often will spoil, if it is an organic type of material such as poultry feed or the like. One solution in the prior art to this problem has been to merely make the channel smaller. In the type of conveyors having a tube for a channel, smaller tubes have been used to prevent the cable with the inserts thereon from riding up over certain matted material, but the problem with this approach has been that when the cable and inserts go through the channel to complete the circuit necessary for operation, there becomes an unacceptable amount of friction and quite often the drive unit is unable to pull the cable through the tube or channel. Even if a large enough drive unit is used, inordinate wear results from such an arrangement. Consequently, it is apparent that there is a need for structures which will overcome the problem of the cable riding up over the material which is tending to stick together or adhere to the bottom of the channel or tube, while at the same time to overcome the frictional problems associated with prior art attempts to overcome this problem.
A still further problem in the above-identified conveying art is encountered when this type of conveying system is utilized for feeding poultry or the like within a poultry house. Typically, a poultry feeding conveyor apparatus of this type would have a circuitous tube or channel having a cable with inserts therein disposed around through the circuitous channel or tube. There would, of course, be a typical drive unit attached thereto, for pulling the cable through the channel or tube, a hopper for introducing poultry feed into the conveyor system and a structure at each cage for distributing feed to each cage for feeding the birds therewith.
There are numerous poultry feeding troughs which have been utilized in connection with such a system, and one of such poultry feeding troughs is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,207,838. This patent shows a structure wherein a portion of the channel or tubular structure for conveying the poultry feed is substantially open at the top, thereby having the cable with the inserts thereon exposed and allowing the birds to feed directly therefrom. The walls of the channel are extended upwardly and outwardly at this point to provide for catching poultry feed which drops out of the mouth of the poultry or which is caused to be thrown out of the bottom of the channel structure during the bird's eating process. In the above-mentioned patent, a special wire hold-down apparatus is attached at spaced intervals along the open feeding trough for holding the cable and inserts down into and near the bottom of the channel structure, while at the same time providing an open space for the birds to feed. One problem associated with this structure is the special and additional welding, soldering, riveting or the like which is necessary, and the additional manufacturing costs due to this labor and materials, as well as the forming cost of the wire member that is attached thereto.
Still another problem associated with the structure shown in the above-identified patent is that once the birds have eaten all of the poultry feed out of the conveyor and become hungry, they are extremely anxious to begin eating again from the trough, as would be expected. Consequently, when the cable with the inserts thereon is turned on to pull more feed around and to each cage for feeding, the poultry immediately begin to eat from the troughs during that time in which the cable and inserts are moving. Consequently, there is a great danger that if the poultry are feeding at the same time that the conveying structure is running, the poultry will catch their beaks between one or more of the circular members attached to the cable and the hold-down structure, thereby pulling the beak off of the bird or causing the bird such serious injury to its beak that it can no longer eat and will therefore die of starvation.
Consequently, there is clearly a need for structures which will overcome the above-identified deficiencies of the prior art, such as overcoming the need for expensive and time consuming hold-down structures and also eliminating the danger of pulling the beaks off of poultry, while at the same time accomplishing the desired hold-down function.